#he was kinder than usual 😅

[headkiss]

hi hi there! Newcomer to your blog here, and I just wanna say that I love love love your writing sm, it makes me warm and happy and I wanna consume it like good soup. I saw that you’re looking for Spencer requests (my beautiful beloved baby) and I was wondering if I could just request a classic friends to lovers where the reader is a member of the team, and gets hurt on a case and that’s what makes Spencer realize? Any format you’d like. This might be a bit tmi but I just got broken up with and honestly fictional men are the only thing getting me through this rn, and seeing you were taking requests was just straight up happiness. Thank you!

this is so sweet what if i cry :,) i hope this helps you at least a little bit (especially since this has been sitting in my drafts for a MINUTE) <3 you will get through this my love (spencer thinks so too!) | 0.7k words!! my first spencer fic so bare with me 😅 tw mention of a knife and a small injury !

You’re no stranger to taking risks. Nobody at the BAU is. It’s practically written into your job descriptions. Split-second decisions, no room for mistakes.

Only, usually they seem to pay off. Mostly. This time, you aren’t so lucky.

After three days of profiling and trying to catch this unsub, of new victims and suspects and secrets uncovered by Garcia, you’ve finally found him. Apprehending an unsub seems to either be the easiest or toughest part of a case.

This time around, it’s the latter. He’s stubborn, and smarter than you’d like to admit, and when you think you’ve got an opening, the upper hand, that one wrong move proves you wrong.

It’s so quick, the way he grabs your wrist and twists your arm behind your back harshly, a pained groan escaping your mouth before you can suppress it. The way the team all springs into action quickly, talking to him calmly, Hotch at the forefront.

And the look on Spencer’s face. The pleading in his eyes that he can’t seem to control.

He’s who you look to first. Who you keep looking at, because you think if anyone could keep you calm in this moment, if anyone could make you believe you’ll be okay, it’s him.

There’s a knife held to your neck, a cruel grip on your arm, and still, you look at Spencer.

“I won’t cut her if you let me go,” the unsub says. You squeeze your eyes shut before blinking them back open.

You know Hotch has a plan, and if he doesn’t, then Emily does, and so on. They’re all incredible, and there’s not a part of you that thinks they won’t get you out of this, but your heart still pounds, your stomach still twists in fear.

“Go ahead,” Hotch says.

“Hotch-” Spencer’s voice is quiet but sharp. He trusts Aaron, he always has, but you aren’t something he wants to gamble.

“You won’t get far,” Hotch continues.

You find Spencer’s eye and nod at him, so slight that he’d be the only one to pick up on it, since he’s paying such close attention to you. Under different circumstances, you might feel your heart flutter from it.

Sure enough, Aaron does have a plan, and before you can really process what he’s said or done to get through to him, the unsub lets you go with a harsh push, and the first place you go is into Spencer’s waiting arms.

“Take her outside, Reid, we’ve got this,” Morgan says quickly. Spencer doesn’t fight him on it.

He walks you out with one arm tight around your waist and the other stabilizing your wrist. His hands are far kinder than the ones that had been on you moments ago, and you let him hold some of your weight until you’re settled sitting in the back of one of the ambulances on scene.

Spencer watches them wrap your wrist with a tensor bandage, watches them assure you that it’s just a sprain, that you’re otherwise injury-free. He holds your good hand the entire time. Maybe too tightly.

You both wait until the paramedics are done and have walked away to help somebody else before speaking.

“Well, that was fun,” you say. Your instincts are always to play things down, to hide behind jokes. Still, you let yourself lean your head against Spencer’s shoulder.

“No, it wasn’t,” he says. The hand that isn’t holding yours covers your bouncing knee. “I know a lot about odds, and they weren’t in our favor back there.”

“It was mostly my fault, probably. I let him get too close.”

“We arrived seconds later than we should have. That car slowed us down in the intersection on the way, and then the rest was off.” He tells you. Comforting you the way he knows how; with the facts. “Time is what went wrong. Not you. Never you.”

You pick your head up and turn your head to look at him, his hair falling around his ears, his eyes still worried but soft. “Never, huh? I’m gonna remember that.”

Reid squeezes your good hand, his pinky running across your wrist to find your pulse, like he’s making sure you’re really okay. “I don’t think I’ve ever been quite so afraid on the job.”

“Not even when you’re the one being held like that?” you ask.

“No,” he tells you. “Not even then.”

[deathbxnny]

Can i request for JJK HCs of Yuta, Yuji, and Megumi with a Huohuo (from HSR) like reader? I was inspired by Huohuo trailer where she gets possessed by Tail and exorcised a spirit with a technique that reminds me of the Domain Expansion from JJK.

Context:

So the reader accidentally became a vessel for a powerful cursed spirit (which is tail) when they were 6 years old. Immediately, they were taken in custody by the Tokyo Jujutsu High. Like Yuji and Yuta, they were at first planned to be executed but thankfully Gojo stepped in and ensure they do not receive that fate (they're a child for God sake) and put them under his care.

Now they are 13 years old and are now beginning to go to the field because of their abilities which are the same ones Huohuo has in game and also they can exorcise cursed spirits when Tail possess them (with consent) like during Huohuo's trailer

Now how do those three react to meeting the reader and realized they are a crybaby and pretty young and why the hell is a child is on the field rn??? (The elders forced it, despite Gojo doing everything he could)

How do those three react that despite being young and a scaredy cat, the reader is actually pretty strong?

How do those three react to seeing Tail being mean to the reader and it being crystal clear that he does care for them like a father?

I remembered you saying that despite not doing any HSR request, readers who are based on HSR characters for request on other fandoms were still acceptable. If i remembered wrong, sorry 😅, you can just ignore this request or put it in the pending waitlist. Hope you have a good day/night though

- Flower Anon 🌸

Hello flower Anon!! Sorry that this took so long to complete. Work has been torturing me as usual, so yeah, please forgive me. I really love this request, though, especially as it has Yuta in it, who's one of my favorites, lol.

Also, these are technically not headcanons and just small stories for the characters, but I've been desperate to write more, so I hope that's okay with you and that you'll like them!!<33

Content: Platonic relationships, preteen reader, mentions of battles, cursing, kinda unserious, sfw

Reader has no mentioned pronouns!

((Not proofread))

》YUTA OKKOTSU

Yuta was a little bewildered at first when he saw a kid shakily appear onto the battlefield, clearly scared and terrified of the curses that surrounded them. He opened his mouth to tell you to get away and hide, when suddenly a curse in the form of a tail swished into view behind you, clearly annoyed at how you were acting.

"They're not going to exorcize themselves, you know? Get it together and attack them already!" It hissed, making you whimper and quickly wave your flag in terror when a curse attempted to injure you. The tail curse then suddenly posessed you quicker than Yuta could move to save you. Its energy was so strong, however, that it made the teen freeze in surprise. One swipe of your hand essentially disintegrated the curse on the spot.

"Just... who are you?" Yuta asked carefully, arms crossed patiently for answer, when you two got out of the danger zone. You nervously fidgeted under his gaze and went to speak when Mr. Tail beat you to it quite rudely. "Why does it matter to you? The kid got enough to deal with because of you weirdos, so give them a break." He said, making the older boy raise a brow in interest. It seemed like you two had something in common, even if Rika's care for Yuta was alot... kinder, if you could say that.

On your walk back to the school, you told him all about your origins and what got you here in the first place. At the sound of the elders having a hand in this, he couldn't help but sigh. That wasn't all too surprising somehow. He was just glad that the curse you were posessed by seemed to genuinely care for you, despite his uncaring and rude attitude.

"Well... if you want, I can help train you-" "-Absolutely not!-" "-Mr. Taillll!" At your exasperated, teary eyed plea, the curse couldn't help but roll his eyes and give in anyways. "Fine... but no funny business, got it?" Yuta gave you a playful and amused smile as he raised his arms in faux defeat.

"I wouldn't dare to."

》YUJI ITADORI

Yuji tried dragging you off the battlefield before you could even show off your abilities, thinking you were simply a lost child, until Mr. Tail eventually was sick of your one-sided arguing in which you were just nervously trying to stutter out the reason for your appearance, whilst the pink haired sorcerer attempted to "scold" you for being there. "Ey you! Let the damned kid go!" He yelled out, making both of you pause.

Shivering in fear, you quickly tried to make up excuses, considering that you've heard more than enough from Yuji and the curse he was a vessel for. But Mr. Tail clearly didn't care enough. "Huh?? Woah, your tail can speak?? Wait, you have a tail-" "-I'm a curse, dumbass!" Yuji blinked before a bright grin crossed his face. "Oh wow! So we're both possessed by a rude curse? Haha, we have so much in common already!" You attempt to smile back shakily but were clearly too anxious to keep it up for long. Especially when you were still surrounded by evil curses practically waiting to attack you.

"Well, anyways, you look pretty young, so you can't be the backup Gojo talked about..." "U-uhm... actually, we are the backup..." "Oh... that's cool then! Show me what you got!" Mr. Tail deadpanned in annoyance, absolutely over this already, as he simply possessed you and took care of the enemy curses himself.

Once he was done doing so, and he finally let you return to normal, Yuji clapped his hand with a determined and proud nod. "Man, we're such a good team, you know?" Mr. Tail felt a vaij pop then as he narrowed his eyes in agitation. "You didn't even do anything!" "Yes, I did! You just weren't looking-" "Oh you little-" The rest of the walk was filled with the two bickering with a teary-eyed and trembling you stuck in the middle.

At least you gained an unlikely friend who was just like you... kind of-

》MEGUMI FUSHIGURO

Megumi already knew and heard about you long before you entered the battle zone. Gojo had been the one who told him of you, asking him to keep an eye out in case you couldn't handle it anymore due to your rather anxious nature. But what he didn't except was how young you actually were. Raising a brow and crossing his arms, he looked at your shaky form in front of him, which was clearly doing everything it could to not look him in the eyes.

"So... You're the backup?" "Uhm... yes...?" "Hm." Despite knowing that the elders forced you to come here, he still didn't feel too confident or good about this. Sending a child onto a suicide mission was on brand for them, however, so he supposed that being very surprised would be wrong too. It was unfortunately expected.

"What the hell are you looking at them like that for?" The curse that you introduced as Mr. Tail hissed out harshly, obviously very unamused by the entire situation himself. Shrugging, Megumi simply shoved his hands into his pockets before turning to enter the building your mission would take place in. "Nothing. I just don't think they should join, if they're scared." He said, referencing the tears that were about to spill from your eyes, including the clear trembling of your body in fear. You absolutely didn't want to be here. Not that he could blame you.

"But... I have to. Otherwise, the elders will..." You trailed off, head hanging low as you found yourself unable to finish that grimm sentence. Megumi paused in his step, head turning slightly to look back at your defeated form. You were strong, far stronger than most were at your age. And your predicament reminded him of a certain friend of his.

Sighing, he scratched his head in speaking up again and continuing on his way. "Fine. Come with me, but stay close and only use your cursed technique when I tell you to." You looked up in surprise and followed after him quickly, feeling somewhat grateful despite the terror that he gave you and Mr. Tail a chance after all.

[lightfeltmemories]

Hmmm, how about an Hiei x S/O or his crush headcannons? Which the S/O who's a goober, like a sweet and adorable and a very romantic one (overdramatic one...) And like thinking that the S/O is like tall (like I guess 5'10 or smth idk 😅) and he's a smol angry demon man like he doesn't know why he dated/developed feelings for a human that's like this but secretly loves them (I just love the opposite attract and tall and small dynamics xD)

oooooh i love this idea!! i decided to do both (starts off as a crush then he becomes a lover) and ngl i kind of took the enemies to lovers route with this one since i feel like it fits his character more. i also decided to go with the "goofy but very strong character" trope with the s/o because honestly? why not lol.

i surprisingly had a lot of fun writing this and it got longer than expected, he's a little ooc in some parts but eh it's not that big of a deal tbh.

tw: injuries, reader almost dies at one point, brief mention of reader having trauma,

lets be real, hiei found you annoying at first, not as annoying as kuwabara but damn near close.

when you were going to fight he didn't have much hope in you, you would probably die in under a second knowing your nature, but as soon as you put in work it almost made his jaw drop.

how he developed feelings for you was at that very moment, he doesn't realize it until much later.

the way his stomach gets this thing called "butterflies" when he's near you, he doesn't move away or threaten you when you get near or touch him (he did at first threatening to rip your arm off) but then he can't help but grow hot... uncomfortably hot.

he's thinking you put him under some type of spell, why does he feel this way? especially over a human? sure, you show courage, sure, you fight well, but guaranteed that there are others who do as well...

but then he comes to the realization, he's never met a demon that has ever made him feel this way.

and a certain red head can see right through it.

kurama eventually asks hiei if something is wrong, but hiei states that he's fine, it takes a bit of time to convince the fire demon to come clean, that something is wrong with him, whilst he was ranting, kurama was listening.. and then he came to the realization.. hiei had a crush on you.

when kurama tells him, he denies it, saying that you were just some annoying human, and that he doesn't have crushes or has the time for a relationship, but kurama knows all of that is a lie, he likes you, and him denying everything just makes things worse.

it was made very clear that this information was kept between the two demons, and eventually, hiei would have to tell you.

some time passes by and you manage to get into a scuffle, you end up injured and hiei comes to the rescue, but tells you not to think of it too deeply.

you don't say anything, but hiei has been acting strange, it's gotten to the point where yusuke and kazuma notice, but don't say a word, it's even weirder when it's just the two of you, he's a lot more.. quiet, and noticeably kinder to you, he doesn't insult you as much anymore, other than that, things remain the same.

while your tidying up your wounds you still managed to keep a smile on your face and a sense of humor, going as far as to make fun of your loss.

hiei would've called you an idiot and told you to shut up, but he can't bring himself to do it somehow, the way you talk, your laugh, your smile, the butterflies get stronger and the blush on his cheeks start to grow darker.

damn... what's with this woman?? why is she so... so....?

it would take so much of his ego and pride to just man up and admit that he likes you, he's not good with words unless it's telling people off (he gets better with this, i promise).

eventually, you got into another fight, and your opponent was tough, so tough in fact you almost die fighting, and you ended up passing out for hours upon hours, the team thought you would die.

hiei put on his cold front as usual, but on the inside he's panicking, he can't lose you, not right now at least.

when it's just him in the infirmary, he looks down at your unconscious body feeling the urge to shed a tear, your happiness is... gone, staring down at nothing but a blank face.

he hoped that you didn't die, he made sure that when you wake up, he'll tell you that he likes you... though it's easier said than done, it'll still take a lot out of him.

eventually he gets in a vulnerable state, kurama yet again see's him, noticing that he's shaking, sitting in the grass at the edge of a cliff, staring into the sunset.

they talk for a while, kurama eventually convinces him that if he can't just flat out tell her, he could just write her a note, and even better, give her a gift.

but what would she even like?

he heard in passing with your talk with his sister, yukina, that you really liked cupcakes (im sorry if you don't like cupcakes just try to imagine it's like some other desert), so, he gets some cupcakes.. from somewhere... somehow... and writes you a letter about how he wants you to be his mate.

and when you say yes.. you're locked in.. forever.

eventually you do wake up, find the cupcake next to the table and eat it, noticing the note and reading over it, it comes to you almost as a shock... hiei? likes you? no way, this has to be some type of elaborate prank.

you do end up seeing hiei, who can't even look at your face, i mean you have to admit.. he's cute, a cute little short guy, while you're taller than him by some inches, he doesn't seem to mind this, he knows he's stronger than you, height doesn't mean jack shit to him.

and so, you accept his request, and now, the two of you are officially dating! or at least that's what you think and he wants.

at first, nothing changes, he's still a tad bit nervous around you, he ordered that there should be no pda in front of the team, he's not ready to tell everyone yet.

when you two are alone, he still had barriers up, not feeling the most comfortable with you yet, the two of you talk and get to know each other, realizing that the reason you were the way you were was because of your trauma, so you masked it with humor.

it takes a while for the two of you to be more intimate (not sexual), holding hangs, hugging, kissing, of course when there wasn't anyone around.

the only person he trusts in regards of knowing about the relationship is kurama and mukuro, no one else.

it takes him a bit to admit that he definitely loves his s/o, and you might've been one of the best things that has happened to him.

[wizerdbattle]

Some notes for the magical girl AU fic:

This is heavily based on @snail-studios’s initial AU and art! I couldn’t help a lot of headcanons sneaking in, so this fic probably isn’t entirely canon to the original AU – and the liberties I’ve taken probably aren’t reflective of Snail’s intentions in the original AU, so come to me with complaints, not her. Thank you again to Snail for letting me write it!

I tried to structure this like the pilot episode for a show. Unfortunately, I haven’t watched as much magical girl stuff as I would have liked to, but I did use what I remember from watching Sailor Moon with my sister for this.

Link and Mipha are childhood friends and were previously neighbours. Sidon and Aryll get along well but aren’t as close.

I’m lazy so the school system I used is the Australian one. Rough translation is – Sidon is in primary school which consists of prep or kinder (a year below Year 1) to Year 6, and Mipha has just started high school which is Year 7 to Year 12. Sidon is in Year 3 and 7-8 years old, and Mipha is in Year 7 and is 12-13 years old. Hope that makes sense.

Mipha likely goes to a private school or a public school a decent distance from her home, hence the commute. She went to the same primary school as Sidon.

Link and Aryll’s Halloween haul is heavily inspired by @clockwise-works’s fic “Happy Poesfest Eve!!!” Modern AU (featuring Halloween) with very fun times, check it out!

I assume sherbert straws are a semi-universal thing but if you have no idea what I’m talking about, they’re these things. Plastic straw you eat the sherbert out of, pretty self-explanatory.

Also, since it’s summer in the fic, it’s either operating on southern hemisphere time – meaning Link has kept his Halloween haul for a month or two – or it’s in northern hemisphere time, meaning he’s kept it for almost a year. Whichever’s funnier.

Zelda’s mother is (evidently) still alive and her main caretaker, which greatly contributes to her cheery disposition. Most of her hobbies and interests are accommodated well by her mother, so she’s probably one of the most genuine versions of herself.

Urbosa and Daruk as well as Dorephan (and possibly one of Zelda’s parents) are teachers at the school.

Tulin and Aryll are Sidon’s age. Yunobo and Riju are a little younger than Mipha and Link.

There are SO MANY Australian-isms in this fic but I didn’t actually intend to set it in Australia… probably just in modern Hyrule.

The cold noodles that Mipha and Sidon make are Singapore style, according to my very brief research (I’ve made them before with family but didn’t know what they were called). I highly recommend them if you can find a recipe! I’ve never added lettuce but I think (hope) it would work. Peanut butter or some sort of peanut sauce, hoisin, soy and sesame oil are usually the sauces to season it with if I remember correctly. Very refreshing!

Sidon is at a rebellious age. Him and Mipha are very close but they bicker a lot now.

Every time I picture Ruta I think of the baby elephant made of pure light from The Good Place. Probably not her canon appearance but it makes me laugh.

Probably obvious but Ruta is an anthropomorphisation (<- no idea how I’m supposed to spell that) of Divine Beast Vah Ruta. Unfortunately she and Mipha don’t get along so well here.

Mipha is a lot more bad-tempered here than in canon generally, because she’s a good bit younger. I headcanon that she was a lot more rebellious in her youth in BOTW anyway.

I also think that like Zelda, without a destiny to fulfil, she’s allowed to be a lot more carefree and mess around. Also be mean! Let her be a little mean.

I had to study the art (this one) repeatedly to get the dress right 😅 it’s a very nice dress!

Laruta, Mipha’s alias, is actually pinched straight from the “Fisheye Lens” Model AU. I’m very unoriginal.

Wow I’m just dropping rec after rec here aren’t I…

I don’t bring it up but since Zelda’s house is wrecked she and her family are staying temporarily with Impa’s family :)

I haven’t watched Miraculous Ladybug in forever but the overly complicated love square or whatever it is is exactly the romantic dynamic I strived for here, especially factoring in the magical girl aliases (and all the magical girl aliases to come). Also there’s zero romance at all here as well, hope that helps!

I had so much fun writing this :))))) I would definitely want to write more!

I have LOADS of headcanons for this AU now as well as just general modern AU headcanons so… ask me about them? ;) Also I’ll probably post about them regardless because I love them.

[firsttarotreader]

I dont know if there are any paul mescal fans on here, but hopefully not, because what I’m about to say wont be taken well 😅.

Ive been looking at the new photoshoot and video on repeat and I’m surprised how someone 21 years younger than Pedro looks so aged. Mescal is from 96, guy’s 28 but looks like 38+. I see them together and they dont look so far apart age wise. Pedro looks amazing but also his boyish charm makes him come across as a young soul. Im not one of those saying shit like ‘oh hes aging backwards’ 🤣🤣 but lets say time has been kinder to him than what it’s being to genZ.

I don’t think he looks that old, I would say he is in his twenties or maybe early thirties at most. However, that kind of very white skin usually ages faster too.

[helianthus-tarot]

What authors or book titles have you enjoyed in the past, and why? Asking this before I suggest any book recs in case they turn out horrible for you, lol. 😅

Hi anon! Thanks for asking, I love to talk about this 😁. I usually read published non-fiction, and fanfiction, but I'm open to reading more published fiction this year.

Non-fiction

I enjoy books about the brain or the mind, and humankind. I also like skills and productivity books (personal management and goal achievement related skills). A plus point if they mention scientific research and are written by experts on the human brain (neuroscientist, psychologist, etc) but not necessary. I like learning about humans, self-mastery and brain hacks, hence why.

Two titles that immediately came to my mind when I saw your ask were Brainblocks: Overcoming the 7 Hidden Barriers to Success by Dr. Theo Tsaousides, and Mastery by Robert Greene. Try them if you like brain hacks and self-mastery!

Fiction

I can enjoy any genres but I gravitate towards survival related themes. Manipulation, survival games, politics, challenges, war or insurgence, espionage, wit and cunning. I like stories that show human flaws and struggles, mystery or investigation, ambition, quid pro quo interactions. Definitely the dystopian genre.

In romance I like enemies to lovers, or some kind of tragic romance but preferably with a happy ending (I know it's a tragedy but I can dream lol). It doesn't always have to be serious tho, it could be a romcom but with some funny office politics.

A lot of people hate The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins but I love it. Coriolanus was a selfish prick, concerned about his survival/success, always thought about what he could gain from his interactions with people and pretended to be kinder than he actually was. His family fell from grace due to a war and he had to live in poverty while trying to pretend he didn't.

I also remember liking the manga We Were There by Obata Yuuki so much when I was a teen. It was about a high school girl who got into a relationship with this one popular boy, she had the same nickname "Nana" as his ex-girlfriend who died in a car crash. The story was lighter compared to most themes I mentioned above since it's shoujo, but it showed human flaws and there were suicide, subtle manipulation, money struggles and whatnot.

Limits

I don't read graphic description of SA and SA that involves the main characters. I've made exceptions before but it's case by case basis.

In romance, I don't like stories where the main female character dilly-dallies between two male characters, or change male interest suddenly in the second book.

For the time being, I don't prefer comics or manga, solely because I read on kindle now, it's a bit difficult to do it.

What to recommend

Don't worry about finding specific things that match my preference above, I'm also trying to expand my library, so feel free to suggest anything that fits my challenge boxes here as long as it doesn't contain my limits. If you wanted to suggest any, I would appreciate it if you could also let me know which challenge it fits and/or a brief summary about what you like about it!

Thank you for wanting to give suggestions! ❤️

[mcalhenwrites]

Can I rant about Seasons for a bit?

I don't think that Vivian and Graham are bad people. Bad parents maybe, but i think their character and behavior is only a result of circumstances neither of them could control in their past. I'm not trying to justify their behavior. Vivian growing up in an abusive household, being taken in by someone who treated him just a little kinder than others must've warped his views on love and parenting a lot. He will never see the corporal and harsh punishment of his children as wrong because when he was growing up, he felt he deserved it. No matter how small the infraction is, Because, at least now, he wasn't beat for nothing, right? Coming into magic didn't help his situation much at all, I suppose. Just gave him more outlet to express his emotions, especially as a teen going through a rebellious phase.

Graham if I remember correctly was kind of sheltered growing up and I think he latched on to that connection with Vivian quickly as teenagers do. Whirlwind romance. He was so quick to pick up and leave everything behind for his exciting new companion, not noticing what kind of influence and reputation Viv had. He stayed with him throughout the years and allowed him to be the more dominant partner because of that I think.

I wondered, without the secret of the magic to keep, would Vivian still have treated Shannon so terribly? I think he would have. He would always fond something to let boil over, and they'd end up right back in that cellar again. I think having magic made Vivian a lot more bold and careless than he would've been without it. The ability to just shut out the outside world from your affairs and be able to disappear whenever you please made him overconfident and seeking that power. If he didn't have magic, I imagine things would've come to a head between he and Graham about his parenting style much sooner...

Sorry for the long rant 😅 Feel free to ignore this! I apologize if I'm wrong about your characterization

Oh, I absolutely love this ask, and I welcome discussions about Seasons! Thank you for taking the time to type all of this out and share it with me. :D

This might turn into a long response, sorry in advance.

I didn’t want Vivian and Graham to come off as complete monsters when I wrote the story. In fact, Vivian ended up worse than I initially intended, because I did not predict he would use his magic on Howie. That scene just happened. (A lot of this story did, if I’m honest, but I had vague ideas about what I wanted to do with it.)

The thing is, each of their children—especially Howie—are the focus of this story. All of them are highlighted in some way. And Howie loves them at the beginning of Seasons. He leans into Vivian and Graham’s affections whenever he can get them, starved for attention. He wants them in his life and initially starts off the story far more forgiving than how he feels by the end of it.

Bee adores both of them as any small child who needs their parents often does. El wants Vivian and Graham to do better so he can forgive them.

I have a tendency to write a lot of stories with abusive parents who are misguided by their own upbringing and societal norms. They’re antagonists, but not all antagonists are evil. The generational cycle continues until the offspring who chose to break it come along. (And sometimes it’s a mix, where some of them continue it and others break it.)

Not to say that anyone who reacts with “I want to take a shiv to Vivian” is wrong! I get the urge to say it and usually get a good laugh out of making jokes like that myself. In fact, I realized while typing this up that “Shiv Viv” is funny as hell…

That said, I’m so glad that people can see Vivian and Graham as more than just evil characters without depth to their characters! And I’m grateful you’re not trying to justify their parenting, I appreciate that. (Discussing their parenting is interesting and I do welcome it, I just never want another comment like the one that told me El deserved a spanking for blowing up at Vivian. As if the beginning of that chapter hadn’t highlighted how badly Vivian and Graham gaslighted El and how much pain that boy had bottled up.)

I really hope “Cosmos”—the prequel about Vivian’s youth—will highlight a lot more about Vivian’s character and his relationship with Graham.

It’s true that he saw Gideon as a savior because some things got better. There’s a conversation in one of my older stories, Cashmere, where one character is mad at his boyfriend for how he treats others. The defense from the boyfriend is, “at least I’m not my parents” and his partner retorts, “You know, just because you’re better than some people out there, it doesn’t mean you can’t still be wrong.”

Gideon still wronged Vivian, he just didn’t starve him or clobber him or sexually abuse him.

The worst part is that not only did Vivian normalize Gideon’s style of parenting, but their society has normalized it too. Vivian has so few positive influences and no one to step in and say, “Hey, this isn’t right.”

As for Graham, he was a bit sheltered in his early years. He still went to school and made friends, and his father was somewhat active in his life (not always in a good way). But he 100% got carried away by his romantic inclinations. Running away with the love of your life and going on an adventure sounds like a lot of fun when you’re young. (Though he wasn’t a teen, he was in his twenties. But I’d argue that most of your 20s are all about doing new things and screwing most of them up. Most of life is like that, actually, but it’s especially true for your 20s. Source: I’m in my late 30s.)

I agree that Viv’s magic plays a huge role in everything, from the continuation of his relationship with Graham, his parenting going unchecked, and his personal growth.

Graham is scared of Vivian’s magic after a while. He’s not aging, and everyone around him is getting old or dying. All that will be left is Vivian. And he doesn’t know at this point that Vivian going to be the kind of father he is until Shannon is there. By that point, Graham can’t leave. Shannon is biologically Vivian’s, and Vivian can just magic all these children into existence if he pleases. Graham may not be a great father—he’s much like his own, who whipped him a lot growing up—but he tries to talk Vivian down. Sometimes he even succeeds, even if only mildly, and that further convinces him that he can’t leave the children to Vivian.

The catch with Shannon is that Vivian would have been ready to parent when he had a child if not for his magic. Vivian was homeless and didn’t like sudden changes unless they were his decision, and Shannon just plopped into his life and forced Vivian into parenthood.

By the time Vivian would have willingly had children without his magic there, he would have felt the consequences of his actions more explicitly. Imagine El, Howie, and Bee all hitting puberty and teens normally, with no magic but zero tolerance for Vivian’s expectations. They’d have friends in their age groups. Influences, bad and good. No magic signatures to track them if they sneak out of the house at night. (Howie is the type who sneaks out and goes on the rooftops with his friends.)

Vivian is the epitome of someone who doesn’t do well with most changes. His magic was his barrier and kept him frozen in time in many ways. He adapted to some technology, but no doubt he dislikes some of it. (In some ways, he’s right, let’s hate smart appliances.) While it’s not bad that he’s still accustomed to styles and decor that have come out of fashion, it still applies to how he treats his children.

He stunted their growth with that frozen time. All of them—Graham, the children, and himself.

He found comfort alongside that power in his magic, and he doesn’t see the latter as much as the people he has power over can see it. He just knows the comfort it gave him.

I don’t think Graham would have even stuck around with Vivian if they had both aged normally and immortality wasn’t so enticing. He would have watched the pair of them get old, both of them unhappy, and maybe chose not to have that for the rest of his life. Left so he could be happy elsewhere before he reached his thirties or forties.

I wonder if Vivian would have had children at all then, or if he would have died miserable and alone after Graham left.

[ephemeronidwrites]

WIP Wednesday

I was tagged (two whole weeks ago, or was it three 😅) by @my-dumb-obsessions. Thank you for the tag!

So without further ado, the snippet. From a soon upcoming, purely self-indulgent smut piece (set in the Darktown clinic):

“You’ve been working long enough,” Anders could hear Hawke say, and he heard silk and velvet whisper as she drew nearer. “You’ve been on your feet all night. All evening and afternoon too, if I know you half as well as I think I do. You can sit down for ten minutes while you eat this.” He was losing this struggle, because just as usual, Hawke was the one out of the two of them who was making any damn sense. Because really, there was no reason he couldn’t have simply left the cutting and cleaning of these herbs to the beginning of the next day, after he’d had some proper rest. Except of course, that would delay the opening of the next clinic shift. And who knew who would show up to be healed then? What poor blighter might be bleeding out on death’s doorstep, while Anders was frantically and incompetently trying to catch up with busywork? Hawke has her parties and estates and elegant interests to preoccupy her, he thought, gritting his teeth. Why couldn’t she just stay in her lane and leave Anders to what little he could still claim? What he was still good at? Anders racked his brains for a kinder way to fend her off. He’d eat whenever he damn well pleased, there were things he had to do that were more important than filling his belly… …when what forced its way to the tip of his tongue was not an angry tirade, but a bit of puff pastry. “—nnffph!” He snarled in protest, and whipped his head around to glare at her, even as the aroma of mushrooms and garlic burst and bloomed in his mouth. And despite himself Anders chewed and swallowed. “That’s a good boy,” Hawke crooned, her eyes twinkling wickedly. He narrowed his eyes. She’s doing this on purpose, he realized. “Since you seemed to like that, big guy,” she said, the slight smile on her face deepening into a smirk. “I think you can take another one?” Anders wanted to say that he hadn’t liked that at all, but he knew it would be a bald-faced lie.

In turn, I tag @the-cryptographer. No pressure, but I'd love to see anything you have in the works!

[shivasdarknight]

WIP tag game!

Make a new post and post your latest line from your WIP & tag as many people as there are words.

i got tagged by @sheepwithspecs! I can't tag everyone because LMAO i write in big batches so (CW: reference to past (accidental) underaged drinking):

Surkukteni furrowed her brow, casting a sidelong look at him. “...Weren’t you a child? What were you doing drinking something like that?”

A snort rolled through Estinien, a tired smile playing faintly at his lips - the sort of smile one wore when thinking of a bittersweet past. “The usual way a boy finds out: I got curious. Took my father’s drink when he wasn’t looking and immediately regretted it.” Another laugh, this one more of a huff as he shook his head. “Hadn’t known I wasn’t supposed to; earned the ribbing I got. Mostly from my mother, as my father thought it funny. Something about that being as best a lesson that I could get about taking things that didn’t belong to me.” And there came the inevitable heavy sigh, stormy eyes cast to the ground around their feet; that dour reminder of the fact he was still in that empty present. “I went back to Ferndale when I was barely a man grown, if you’d believe it. I swore I wouldn’t, but curiosity got the best of me. Nature had reclaimed most of it and there was little evidence that there’d ever been a village there at all. Went poking around, upset myself at seeing what’d been left behind to rot, and found a store of the damn stuff in a cellar I could still get access to. First trip was by myself to see how much I could bring back, which was about…three bottles, mayhap? Second and third times, Alberic helped - I suppose in part because of the guilt around that situation. Every other time ‘twas Aymeric that joined me in seeing what could be salvaged. Sold some of it as it had a good reputation, apparently, but kept plenty around for obvious reasons.” Estinien paused to take another drink from the flask, still not looking at Surkukteni yet his voice was noticeably less dour. “But before you ask, it’s back in Ishgard. Dunno what happened since it’s in my old apartment that’s in all likelihood been forfeited to whoever wanted it since I don’t need it anymore nor plan on going back. Took some with me, but that’s all gone now. But I do wish I could return the favor, though.”

Well, he’s exceptionally skilled at turning every topic into a depressing lament.

There were days Surkukteni wished she’d never picked up that damn soulstone, and that was one of those days-As if my thoughts are solely mine own! She cast a sidelong glance at Estinien who kept his eyes to the fire, her blunt nails picking at the faint seam from where the metal of her canteen had been welded together. “Don’t worry about that; the company’s more than enough for me,” was the considerably kinder thing to say - ‘Tis the coward’s way, you took. “Though, color me surprised, because it seems you’ve got an association with just about everything - either Aymeric or Ferndale, you can relate a lot of things to each other."

I'm tagging @lordguru and anyone who wants to do it because im blanking on who writes and who doesnt 😅😅😅 whoops

[dandelionlovesyou]

Story: You Realize You're a Distraction

You Realize You're a Distraction by Buttercupbadass (BBA) ❤️❤️❤️

[xbonecandyx]

Hello, bones. I recently played Lover's Cup. I'm obsessed with Wade and want to know more about him.

What does Wade's hair feel like, and does he mind being touched?

What are the things that make Wade feel shy?

What are Wade's working hours? Will he talk to me about what happened at work?

What else will Wade wear besides his work clothes?

If MC had an impacted wisdom tooth, would Dr. Curtis choose to enlarge the wound and remove the tooth intact, or crack the tooth to reduce the wound?（I think this may be a tram problem. I don't know whether he will use an electric knife or an ultrasonic bone knife? Will it be anesthetized?I want to laugh at the thought of his embarrassment.😆）

II don't know if my many questions and my translator (I can't speak English) will bother you.If it bothers you, please don't reply. I don't want to embarrass you. I just want you to know that I thought of this.😣

I'm sorry. I'm a greedy person.In fact, I'm still thinking a lot about Wade.

Thank you for creating such a fascinating character.

Wade's hair is a bit coarse, but not too bad to touch, and it's usually surprisingly clean given how the rest of him looks! He's very touch starved, even if he won't say that, so touching his hair would make him quite happy!

Wade definitely gets shy when it comes to expressing emotion or outright talking about his love for you, he tends to be a guy to show rather than tell, so verbal affirmation, giving or recieving, is something he gets shy about.

Wade usually works a pretty normal 9 to 5 type day shift at an auto shop, and he's definitely willing to talk about work afterward, but he can be grumpy because he's so tired.

As for an impacted wisdom tooth, it really depends on how much he loves MC. If he's not too attached he'd definitely prioritize the tooth first, but I think he's kinder to MC and less indulgent to himself the more he loves MC. He doesn't want to lose them so he reduces their chances of getting hurt as much as possible- though being honest I don't think anesthetic will be involved either way 😂😅

[aquanova99]

The guards mate being harassed while they were out on a mission

Please? Yes a please would be nice, not so demanding mayhaps? 😅

For all these scenarios I’m going to say they came home unexpectedly from a mission early and overheard someone grabs you and tells you since ‘pick your guard’ isn’t here you should let loose and have fun. You tell them to leave you alone in a lot less kinder way. And the idiot grabs your wrist, tightly. A little too tightly, you’re wrist is slightly cracking. He tries to tell you to not be such a prude/bitch/ whatever derogatory term you think is the worst. The guard member comes right when he hears the wrist crack but gets there as he’s insulting you

Alec

I suggest you remove your hand unless you want to permanently live without it

Alec has this sort of presence about him when he’s angry, it’s terrifying because he never actually raises his voice but it’s almost as if you can feel the anger radiate off of him

His eyes go dark, the black pupil dilating to where it could almost take over the red in his eyes

The guy freezes and slowly removes his hand off you, you both know how this is going to go down and you can’t help smirking at him when he turns around unable to even look Alec in the face as he starts groveling

Alec tells you to go see Jane and you just nod and turn around while Alec begins to use his gift as he sees fit to punish the guy as he sees fit

Alec is ready to tear someone apart for even looking at you wrong you can’t imagine what’s happening but let’s say it’s probably best he sent you away for it

Once hes done he will ask Jane to give you guys some space and he will check your hand, even though the damage is long gone and ask if you’re okay and if this has happened before

Other than him teasing you it had never gone further than that, but this will justify Alec’s actions.

He spends the rest of the night glued to your side and unfortunately for everyone else ready to disable anyone who comes within a foot of you

Jane

Let’s say it’s a good thing she was more interested in finding you than going to Aro to debrief what happened like usual

However…Jane is an act first think later kind of girl

The second she sets her eyes on the idiot trying to force you to do something you don’t want she’s using her powers which unfortunately this causes his grip to tighten

And this does hurt quite a bit and the whimper you let out breaks her out of her concentration which helps the guy let go of your arm and drop to the ground

Jane literally steps over him to check on you and apologize for adding to what he did

The guy starts to scramble up and she hits him with her gift again ‘if you even think about getting up right now I’ll use my gift so harshly, you’ll wish I just ripped off your stupid head.”

The guy avoids eye contact and stays hunched over the ground.

Jane nods and leads you to your shared room to stay with you the rest of the night

Demetri

Demetri is a bit more dramatic, he knows you can handle yourself but you’ve told him about the annoying guard before so he always makes sure to find you immediately

He wishes he had handled him the first time you told him about the issue and cursed himself for believing your downplaying of events

He appears directly behind him “It’s funny.” He says in response to him telling you to stop being whatever insult he calls you, “I was going to say the same about you.”

The guy doesn’t even get a chance to let go or turn his head before Demetri breaks it clean off of him

He then frantically throws the head as far as he can before ripping the guys hand off of you

He brings your hand up to his face to kiss it, “are you alright cara?” Of course you are he came just in time. He gets another guard to clean up the idiot who dared to touch you and he takes you to your room

Scolding you a bit for not telling him how bad the guy was, you tell him he’s never been that bad before and he tells you no one should be talk to you like that period.

Spends the rest of the night with you cuddled into him watching movies so he can run his hand down your hair and to your shoulder all night, makes a mental note to have someone he actually trusts keep an eye on you for him

Felix

The guard had to have a death wish like surely to be dumb enough to mess with anyones mate but especially Felix’s

He freezes as he hears Felix rush up and stop several feet behind him

He turns around to see Felix leaning against the wall before he starts to walk up to the two of you

There’s just something about Felix, he doesn’t have a gift but he commands a room and the guy is frozen, and I mean frozen in place

Felix separates the two of you and while he’s gentle with you, you can now hear the cracking of the others guys arm. Felix just looks at you and you know he’s worried about you and whether you’re okay. You nod and Felix turns to the other guy who is now saying he was just joking and he would never think to hurt you

Felix was the farthest thing from cruel but there was a reason he was feared as equally as the twins. “Well if it’s just a joke.. then no harm done. Isn’t that right y/n?”

Oh god this was not going to end well but you agreed with him regardless, the other vampire is clueless however and he laughs out of relief and assure him that it won’t happen again

“You’re right…it won’t.” He growls and again the other vampire is history. Felix is furious though and makes a mess unlike anything anyone has ever seen. It’s so attractive tho ngl

When he’s done turning the guy to dust he tells the twins to have fun if he manages to put himself back together and carries you away instantly.

He sits down with you and turns your wrist over and over in his hands worrying that the guy did more damage than he thought, he’s still furious so you use your other hand to rest it on his cheek so he look at you in the face. He realizes the danger is over and takes a deep breath before kissing your forehead

He asks a lot of questions to make sure there’s no one else he needs to dispose of or ask the kings to dispose of for you. His buzz doesn’t really run out no matter how much he tries so the two of you go for a walk in the gardens where he can get some fresh air and relax with you

Lots of kisses lots among other things when he calms down and can take you back to the room

[halliestinks]

I’m sorry if I’m too annoying today, I was thinking about asking for this 😭 and if we can ask for 3 characters: Cartman (okay he’s my fave I admit), Craig, Jimmy? (Like always, headcanons and separated)

Since I have two diagnoses, I’m gonna ask for the more “popular”:

How would the boys deal in general with someone who suffers from anxiety disorder?

It’s kind of hard for me to tell my exact problems, because it interferes with another diagnosis 😅 but I guess that in general it would be eating in a crowd, speaking in front of people, rarely panic attacks,…

Hope it’s okay again! <3

I know this is late but I literally had no motivation to write for two days, You aren’t annoying at all! Honestly, you can request as much as you want as long as they’re open ^^

also I completely forgot to mention it in my introduction but I don’t usually write for more than two people at a time, so I’ll just do Cartman and Craig for now if that’s alright

Cartman wouldn’t understand at all, he just doesn’t know why people could get so anxious over things that are normal for everyone

He will most likely make fun of them for it, he’s an asshole and there’s no excuse for that

However there would be those rare moments where the kinder side of Cartman shows, like if he was alone with you and your anxiety was really bad then he’d try to distract you from it

Even though he’s horrible at comforting people, it doesn’t mean he wouldn’t try. Only when no one else is around of course

Speaking in public isn’t a problem to Cartman, so if you didn’t want to, then he would gladly volunteer to do it for you instead. No one would question it either just because they’re so used to Cartman trying to be the centre of attention

He’d ask his friends what they know about anxiety disorder and if they ever got suspicious, Cartman would simply brush it off and tell them he wanted to know for one of his usual plots

When you have a panic attack, Cartman would notice something is wrong with you almost instantly but would have no idea what to do. Unless you explain to him that you need to leave the area, or drag him away then he wont be much help

Craig is so chill when it comes to others with anxiety, like he knows exactly what to do when you are struggling

He’s so good at comforting?? If you need something to calm your nerves then be sure that Craig will get it for you asap, and he will even get new things for you to try like fidgets

Just like Cartman, Craig will speak up for you if you aren’t comfortable with doing so. But he will also help you try get better at speaking in front of others, like practicing with a fake crowd

If you started to have a panic attack at school or just anywhere near a large group of people, Craig will lead you to somewhere quiet and comfort you

Craig would do a lot of research on Anxiety Disorder so he can understand you better, he looks at different methods to use during a panic attack then remembers them off by heart

He is extremely patient with you, and always reassures that you’re doing great when doing things that make you anxious

[the-void-writes]

For those pipping hot OC asks-

I have fallen for Dante - I'm so sorry 🙈

I'm sorry there's so many things I want to know about him - SO: 🥵💪👀🧠😍💐 for Dante xD

Thank you 😏❤️

@bloodlessheirbyjacques ✨(:

@bloodlessheirbyjacques 🤣🤣🤣 Don’t be sorry, I’m so glad you love him!

So I got carried away by the end of this 😅 Sorry for the length.

🥵 : Is your OC perceived as physically attractive to others? Is it at first glance or is it something that takes more time to reach fruition?

It’s funny because it depends on what time the people in Paradise came from. If they lived more recently, they absolutely think Dante’s hot. Everyone from the more historical side just ignores him and runs straight into King Gazali’s arms (it’s the Sweet Himbo King energy 😂) They start to change their minds after Dante opens up more and shows his kinder nature.

💪 : What is your OC’s most physically attractive attribute?

That million-dollar-smile. He flashes that once and everyone just forgets what they’re doing. Those golden eyes are also pretty deadly, when they catch the light just right, and he kind of hates it, because it’s part of how the Infection is mutating him. (Vesely’s disease is color-coded, how fun 🤣)

🧠 : What is your OC’s most mentally attractive attribute?

His creativity and mechanical intelligence. Dante’s stepfather was an ass, but at least his money got him a good education in robotics and engineering. Dude went from making voice-activated toys for the poor kids in his old neighborhood to building six lifelike android dancers because he didn’t want to hire any real people and make them uncomfortable. He doesn’t let anyone touch his bots in a demeaning way.

👀 : Does your OC believe they are attractive? Do they use that to their advantage?

Oh, he knows he’s hot stuff, and he’s proud of it. He doesn’t really use it, though, except maybe on Will the first time they meet because they both kind of got sidelined while the others fought Vesely’s army, and Dante’s sitting there like “well the only thing I can think of is making out until the war’s over.” But Will is fed up with people deciding he’s too useless to fight and asks Dante to help him sneak into the new facility because they were both Infected and deserve their justice against Vesely. That’s when Dante knows that there’s something interesting about this new guy, something worth sticking around for.

😍 : What does your OC find irresistible in others?

Mystery. His powers let him see people’s emotions and sometimes change them, so he can usually read people like a book, but Will shows up with all his repressed memories, and Dante is excited to get to know him without immediately sensing everything about him. Dante also can’t resist someone he can be playful around. He knows he’s hot, but he wants his relationship to be about more than that. He wants someone he can sit with at the back of the palace so they can roast people together, someone who’s up for sliding down the hill in a shopping cart like the good old days.

And as mentioned above, Dante loves when someone takes charge and fights for what’s right. He fell in love with Vani after seeing how hard he worked to make their city a better place to live, but Vani wasn’t always the nicest person. Will, on the other hand, risks life and limb to save people that weren’t even that nice to him because he won’t let anyone suffer the way he and his family did. Dante almost proposed to him right then and there 😂

💐 : What is their courting style? How would they woo someone?

Back in the day, he would have just done the old “movie theater date” routine, but after he sees what Will’s been through, he takes things real slow. Nothing explicitly romantic at first, like a walk around the market or hanging out at one of Gazali’s parties. Then, when he’s sure Will is open to it, it’s stargazing in the observatory or out in the forest. And then, he’ll actually ask him to a royal dance. It’s the patience that does it for Will, but he has to admit that he loves the attention, as well.

Thank you for letting me ramble about them, I love them so much ☺️

[ninjaslegos]

hey so I was just thinking about this but you know how in season 1 garmadon is staying with the ninja bc of Lloyd? And he keeps everyone up with his powers in that one episode? Can you write where Kai gets annoyed so he eventually comes into readers room and tells them what happened and they’re just teasing me the whole time but yeah it’s just a whole lot of teasing and fluff?? I feel bad for asking for another kai centric post bc you’ve been getting so many of them😅 and idek if u like him

No no, don't feel bad for asking for another Kai fic!! I had a crush on him when I was little and the show was just airing on Cartoon Network lol. After revisiting the series, my love for the show came back and I'm spreading out and liking more characters now, it's great!

I hope you don't mind that 1) reader is a Garmadon, and 2) Kai is not dating (Y/N) (yet) and that's why Garmadon is targeting him the most lol

Exhaustion of People and Body

Where Kai just really needs a break from Garmadon.

It was bad enough that Garmadon was evil. It was even worse so that he was living with them. Worst of all was that he was constantly trying to antagonize him and the other ninja, all so he could cry about it to his brother, who would scold them. But did he really have to do this? Bedtime was a sacred time where Kai could get all his needed rest and let his body heal for tomorrow morning.

"Do you have to do that? We're trying to sleep!" He yells at him while he's practicing his strange...whatever electricity magic he had going on. One glance around the room at the others' annoyed expressions told him he wasn't the only one sick of Garmadon. He wasn't even being evil right now, just obnoxious. He lets out a grunt of frustration, putting a pillow over his head so he could try and block out the noise, but Garmadon's laughter just made things worse.

He wanted to absolutely pummel the guy, but he'd just get severely punished, and he didn't want that, so he decided to leave and go sleep somewhere else. Where better than the couch? It was on the other side of The Bounty, and across from yours and Lloyd's room, far away from Garmadon and his loud magic. Space was tight, so you had to share a room with your little brother. Neither of you minded, though, you were close siblings, like he and Nya.

He was actually surprised to see you awake on the couch, playing music on your keyboard and singing along. It wasn't anything he'd heard before, so you must've made it up yourself. You did say you wanted to be a famous singer when you grew up, but unfortunately being the kid of Lord Garmadon meant no one wanted to support you, even though you were much kinder than him, and even compared to your brother you were a sweetheart.

"Hey, (Y/N), why are you up so late?" He asks.

You giggle, "I inherited my father's nocturnal activity, of course I'm going to be awake. Haven't you ever wondered why I always wake up at noon?"

"Oh, I haven't really noticed or thought about it." He chuckles sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"So, why are you up, huh bed head?" You tease, pointing out his scruffy hair from tossing and turning.

"Hey!" He pouts, trying to fix it into his typical style, "I dunno...it's just...your dad he's..."

"Antagonizing you again?" You grin, and chuckle when he nods. "Come on," you scoot over and pat the empty seat next to you for him to sit, "you know he bothers you because you're close to me, right? You're like my best friend." Well that stung.

He shrugs, "well, of course I notice when he bothers me, or the others when we're in a group, but I didn't know he bothered me more than them..." He then groans loudly and flops back against the couch.

"Hmm, maybe I can talk to him for you. I'm his first baby, he'll listen to anything I say." You put a cute face and stick your tongue out playfully.

He grins, "maybe."

"So, what was he even up to?" You ask, tilting your head in a way Kai found cute.

"Oh, the usual. Being annoying." He huffs, then sighs and scoots closer to you, so he could lean against your arm. "He's using his powers while the rest of us are trying to sleep, and it's loud and it's keeping us up." He sits up a little so he can turn his body and face you, "how come he doesn't think I'm good enough for you?" He catches himself and fixes his sentence, "I'm a good friend, right?"

"Oh, gee, Kai, I don't know." You held up your hand, counting on your fingers, "you hung my brother up on a sign when you first met him, you gave me a black eye when I tried to help him down, you and the other ninja were especially rude to us when we first came to live with Uncle Wu-"

"Hey, in my defense, you should've been trying to keep Lloyd from doing bad things like a good older sibling." He interrupts.

"Wow, wow, wow, Kai." You hold up another finger, "calling me a bad sibling for taking care of my little brother and letting him do what he wants in order to be happy because without me he would've been starving on the streets? Tsk tsk." You shake your head, then continue your list, "you called me names, pushed me a lot, and you were generally really mean to me the most."

"But I stopped doing that! And now look at us? Best friends!" He grins awkwardly, trying to turn the situation around. "So maybe I was mean to you the first week you were here? I thought you were cool and actually nice and stuff...and now we've been friends for a whole month almost!"

"Sure, hotshot." You tease, flicking his forehead.

"Come on, (Y/N)!" He whines, rubbing the spot, "I'm a good guy! You've changed me, I promise!"

You continue messing with him, "hmm, actually I think Zane should be my new best friend, he didn't judge me as much as the rest of you..." you put your hand to your chin in mock thought.

You know you've pushed too many buttons when instead of getting a flustered and pouting Kai, you get the one who takes control of the situation. You suddenly find yourself under him, as he pins you down by your left shoulder and right wrist, keeping that hand off your chin. "You're my best friend, and as my best friend, I advise you to stop taunting me."

You swallow thickly, having only two choices now. Well, you did have your father's recklessness. "Why should I?"

There's a moment, where now Kai has to make his choice. You watch him furrow his eyebrows before he leans down and kisses you roughly, careful not to lower his head too fast so he doesn't hit your nose against his or bump foreheads. He only stops when he hears you sniffle. "(Y/N)?" All tension between you now lost, as he uses a soft tone of voice to ask if you're okay. "I didn't hurt you, did I? Did I read the situation wrong?"

You shake your head, "no, no Kai, you didn't." You take a moment to wipe a few tears away before continuing, "it's just that I've spent my whole life listening to people either be scared of me because of my heritage, or angry at me for what my father does. I never...I never thought that anyone would ever love me."

"Oh, (Y/N)," he gets off you and helps you sit up, so he could wrap his arms around you properly. "Of course people would love you. Even if I wasn't here, there would be someone out there, or even multiple people out there who would see past those things your father did, to see things that you did, or even what you are doing! I mean, your music is incredible, someday you'll be famous, for all the right reasons." He holds your head against his chest so you could listen to his calming heartbeat as he spoke, and you ended up gripping his pajamas tightly.

After comprehending what he said, and calming down, you sigh the last of your tears away, "I've needed a nice hug like this. Not even Lloyd gives me enough of them." You try to pass off the depressing sentence with a chuckle, but it doesn't work as well as you think it does.

"Well, I'm here now, and I'm willing to give you all the hugs you need." He kisses the top of your head, and gives you an extra tight squeeze. "Does that feel better?" He asks, and you nod.

Another few moments of cuddling later, you sigh and get off him, "come on, you look so exhausted." You stand up and help him off the couch. "If you don't want to go to your room, I guess you can sleep in my bed with me."

"What about the couch?"

You shake your head, "my dad will strangle you if he sees us there, it's better to go to my room and sleep in there, since he doesn't go in. You should leave a pretend note though, in case you over sleep and people try to look for you."

He thinks it over, then nods, writing something quick about going out for some clothes before posting it to the fridge and then heading to your room with you, hand in hand.

Lloyd woke up from the light coming into your shared room, and looked at the two of you. "What's Kai doing here?"

"Nightmare." You answer before he can even open his mouth. "Now don't tell dad, okay?"

"What do I get out of it?"

"Uhh, I dunno, I'll make you something from the kitchen, like a big sundae." You shrug.

"Sure, whatever." He groans and rolls over.

"Thanks, Garma-jr." You wink, although he can't see it. But Kai can, and wonders where the nickname came from.

"Don't call me that!" You can hear him pout as he pulls the blanket over his head.

You decide to explain it a little, "dad has a...weird taste in names. Good thing Mom decided she didn't like it." You snort. You get under the covers, and hold them up for Kai to get under as well. He scoots close to you, and wraps his lower arm beneath your neck, the other draped over your rib cage so he could hold you close, while your arms went around his stomach. You tangled your legs together comfortably, and tried to get some sleep. "I love you, Kai."

He grins lazily, eyes already closed and too heavy to open again. "I love you just as much, (Y/N)."

Before either of you can drift off, you hear Lloyd complain, "if you don't give me a new Starfarer comic, I'm telling dad you're dating (Y/N)!"

[avaantares]

To Xie Lian, remorse is an old companion: It has taken him centuries to come to terms with the evil he did to complete strangers, and the fear that he might have unwittingly committed something even more heinous against the person who matters most to him in the world gnaws at him constantly. “I suppose I’m a little worried about something,” he temporizes. It’s certainly more than a little, and “worried” is an understatement, but he thinks it might be kinder to both of them to ease into the truth.

As always, his needs command Hua Cheng’s complete attention. “Tell me.”

I needed to give my brain a rest from fighting with a timeline-related plot hole in my NaNoWriMo project, so I took a break and wrote a TGCF thing! Because that is very different than a novel about con artists and sea pirates. (Although considering some of the character drama in my WIP, perhaps less different than you might think...)

It is the most ~ v i o l e t ~ of purple prose and has 97% more scenery than my usual, but between yesterday's S2 trailer drop (woot!) and my REALLY needing to get back to work on the NaNo story instead of avoiding it by, er, writing fanfiction 😅 I decided to go ahead and post this now instead of holding it back to rework in December. Ergo, you get all the description and not-so-subtle scenery metaphors intact!